The idiom of Curly’s speech was at times a trifle obscure to the uneducated ear.  I gathered that he believed these newcomers to be of proper social rank, and that he was also of the opinion that a certain mending in their material matters might add to the happiness of the family.

“But say,” he began again shortly, “I ain’t told you half about our dinner.”

“That is to say—­” said I.

“We’re goin’ to have oysters!” he replied.

“Oh, Curly!” objected I, petulantly, “what’s the use lying?  I’ll agree that you may perhaps marry the girl—­I don’t care anything about that.  But as to oysters, you know there never was an oyster in Heart’s Desire, and never will be, world without end.”

“Huh!” said Curly.  “Huh!” And presently, “Is that so?”

“You know it’s so,” said I.

“Is that so?” reiterated he once more.  “Nice way to act, ain’t it, when you’re ast out to dinner in the best society of the place?  Tell a feller he’s shy on facts, when all he’s handin’ out is just the plain, unfreckled truth, for onct at least.  We got oysters, four cans of ’em, and done had ’em for a month.  They’re up there.”  He jerked a thumb toward the top of old Carrizo Mountain.  I looked at the snow, and in a flash comprehended.  There, indeed, was cold storage, the only cold storage possible in Heart’s Desire!

“Tom Osby brought ’em down from Vegas the last time he come down,” said Curly.  “They’re there, sir, four cans of ’em.  You know where the Carrizo spring is?  Well, there’s a snowbank in that canon, about two hundred yards off to the left of the spring.  The oysters is in there.  Keep?  They got to keep!

“Them’s the only oysters ever was knowed between the Pecos and the Rio Grande,” he continued pridefully.  “Now I want to ask you, friend, if this ain’t just a leetle the dashed blamedest, hottest Christmas dinner ever was pulled off?”

“Curly,” said I, “you are a continuous surprise to me.”

“The trouble with you is,” said Curly, lighting another cigarette, “you look the wrong way from the top of the divide.  Never mind about home and mother.  Them is States institooshuns.  The only feller any good here is the feller that comes to stay, and likes it.  You like it?”

“Yes, Curly,” I replied seriously, “I do like it, and I’m going to stay if I can.”

“Well, you be mighty blamed careful if that’s the way you feel about it,” said Curly.  “I got my own eye on that girl from Kansas, and I serve notice right here.  No use for you or Mac or any of you to be a-tryin’ to cut out any stock for me.  I seen it first.”

We dropped down and ever down as we rode on along the winding mountain trail.  The dark sides of the Patos Mountains edged around to the back of us, and the scarred flanks of big Carrizo came farther and farther forward along our left cheeks as we rode on.  Then the trail made a sharp bend to the left, zigzagged a bit to get through a series of broken ravines, and at last topped the low false divide which rose at the upper end of the valley of Heart’s Desire.